~ Fragments of Expatriate Life

Picking on English Teachers

Why do I pick on English teachers in this blog? Well it’s not because they’re all bad – I know a lot of English teachers here and some are excellent professionals who once had a passion for teaching and learning. I say once had, because Chinese schools are notorious for driving this out of their teaching staff.

Chinese students have a hard school life. This photo was taken during the SARS epidemic and in no way am I suggesting that bad teaching is contagious even if it sometimes appears that way...

Most Chinese students have ridiculously heavy school schedules – far longer than in the West, and they work from morning to night on a stupid number of subjects followed by homework – 6 days a week. They need a pass in English to get accepted onto a degree course but for the vast majority they will jettison this skill that same day and never use it again. So they don’t want passionate enthusiastic teachers – they want to get through this minor annoyance with a minimum of fuss.

In my experience it takes a professional English teacher in China about a year (and often less) for the light to dim in their eyes and for despair to set in. The exception to this rule is those teachers who are well qualified and working for an international school. Their kids are usually motivated to learn English because they will leave China to study at higher levels and will need to be able to communicate when they do.

However there is a curious aspect to these particular teachers’ behaviour in public – and that’s their silent omission of the word “English” when it comes to describing their profession. Ask any of them on first meeting what they do and they always say; “I’m a teacher”. It takes quite a bit of prodding for them to confess they teach English and it’s always qualified with “But I’m a proper teacher not an English teacher per se.”

Even I know that's not how you spell cat... in fact I'm not even sure that is a cat. Why are you teaching me again? Oh I remember - they needed a "white face" to convince my parents to pay the fees... I'm such a cynic...

And that brings us to the rest of China’s English teachers. They are unqualified (not just to teach but often even to speak and read their own language) folk who are often working here illegally (usually) and earning less money than they’d make in McD’s back home. Believe it or not – even in this group there are some genuine professionals who’ve studied their art and are passionate about it. I’m not a firm believer in qualifications maketh man, and I know you can be better at something than a “professional” if you want to be.

However the larger share of this group are a mess. Here you’ll find truly dysfunctional alcoholics, sex tourists, criminals on the run in their home countries, visa over-stayers, the works. And these people who make up what appears to be the majority of the profession are the reason that English teachers take a beat down here in China.

I’ve lost count of “English teachers” here who can’t distinguish between “your” and “you’re” or “their, there and they’re”. They seem to think this is perfectly acceptable because their clients can’t either. I’ve met teachers who’ve been to lessons falling down drunk and laugh about how easy it is to get away with it. And so on.

Their foolish behaviour seems to know no bounds either – one of the teachers here in Shenzhen. Wrote a long (and badly written) article about how he’s staying here illegally and is making a barely living wage in his own name, with pictures of him and his girlfriend (to make it really easy to identify him) for a major ESL website here in China. What a great way to bring yourself to the attention of the authorities.

Chinese parents love their children and want the best for them. Sadly when it comes to choosing English teachers they haven't got a clue, and this lack of knowledge is exploited by unscrupulous schools...

I honestly don’t understand the appeal of teaching English here either. If I was going to head to somewhere where it’s easy to teach English without much in the way of qualifications – it wouldn’t be China. Even mega-rich people in China live a generally lower standard of life than their Western peers. English teachers might make middle class money by local standards but they make lousy money compared to being at home – where almost everything (except the availability of pretty girls) is of a higher comparable standard.

So English teachers get picked on here, and in real life mainly because they’re so often deserving of it. And while it’s not fair on the few good ones (some of which you’ll find on my blogroll) it’s too easy an opportunity to pass up. And yes, sometimes I feel bad about that but not for long.

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42 thoughts on “Picking on English Teachers”

My frustration is to say I am a teacher, and to be immediately branded an “English Teacher.” I rarely teach English, preferring Maths, Accounting and Business (not Business English), in English. Even when this is known, there seems a perverse insistence, “but if you teach in English, you are an English Teacher.” 🙂

I’m a trainer by trade so I sympathise – I teach sales skills, IT applications, management skills, and train trainers – that sort of thing. In fact I’ve trained pretty much every function in major enterprises – I am nonetheless always dismissed as “just a trainer” – which shows how much we’re valued in real life… aaargghh.

I can absolutely see where you are coming from here. I have read this article with particular interest since I spent a year as a ‘teacher’ in China. I must admit, I loved it.

Much can be said for earning money as a teacher in China. It has to be done the right way. So many people are employed by agencies who only require a ‘white face’ and I initially bought in. However, when I was free from a such contract I was able to spread my wings as a sort of freelance teacher. During that short period I was able to earn a similar wage to a qualified teacher in England. But you are right, you are made to work hard.

I met so many people who fit the description of teachers in your article. Perhaps I was one, although I hope I wasn’t. However, I can completely understand your frustrations and concern for the new generation of english speakers emerging in china.

Now I am back in the UK completing my PGCE in primary teaching but I am itching to get back…not because of the teaching, more my love for the beauty of the country.

When I first started training people I had no formal qualifications as a trainer, all told I did a pretty good job though. I don’t think not being qualified is a set back in a career – I think just not caring is, particularly if you aren’t able to do the thing you’re teaching (and that definitely doesn’t apply to the English teachers who read my blog) 🙂

You’ll have a much better deal here with a PGCE under your belt – the international schools will hire you, you’ll get paid better and your expat friends will genuinely respect your profession. So here’s to seeing you back in China soon. 🙂

Here in Taiwan the English teachers also abound, with higher salaries and standards of living than in China but still less than I was making working a “real job” in Australia and Europe. I have a very low opinion of them, particularly the men who are here because they are worthless back home but valued here (confucian society = unqualified teacher is a relatively respected profession, white+male = top of the ladder), but as I have many good friends who are English teachers, I have learned to curb my opinions more or less successfully, depending on how drunk I am. Fortunately I shouldn’t ever have to (or want to!) teach English but it is pretty much what is expected of a Westerner here — and the locals definitely think that the money is fantastic compared to their own salaries working 8-8 in a shitty office!

I know I am over a year late to this thread but I just have to express how happy I was to find that the “Losers Back Home” phenomenon has been witnessed and recorded somewhere besides the school I taught at!

I look at my cousin, who is now in the elementary school, spending long hours at school . When school’s over, tutoring begins, as well as her music class or drawing lessons… kids nowadays don’t seems to have a life. Whats wrong with just letting them grow up without all those crap?

I completely agree Katharine – some of the best education in the world is to be had in Finland and their kids don’t even start school until they’re 7 because the country recognises how important childhood is…

What I also find unsettling is that Chinese locals choose and judge potential English teachers based on their physical appearances. If they look “foreign” they are automatically accepted even if they can’t differentiate such words as “their” and “they’re” because as a matter of fact, their native tongue is, for example, German.

I am a Chinese- American but I was born and raised in the U.S. with English being my native language, and if I were to apply for the same position I would most likely get turned down for another “native” English speaker.

Anna raises an excellent point here, woe betide the native English speaker who doesn’t look white – and those treated worst are those that look Chinese, because then they must be local and therefore couldn’t possibly speak English – that’s a bit of a vicious circle really.

Yes, i was going to write something about all the various alcoholics/perverts/general weirdos that I’ve encountered in teaching jobs here, but I was rather afraid that someone would recognize themselves and come hit me or something.

One point, most English teachers I’ve met here are working illegally because their school didn’t get them a work visa like they were supposed to. Do I have mine?…….Perhaps….

I haven’t met any outright failures that are fleeing their home countries. In my school, there’s some who are really qualified and are just traveling around Asia for adventure. There’s one guy though, who for some bizarre reason, decided to moved from Australia and settle in China, despite not liking the food or culture. Hmmmm…. He’s an old guy too. Oh, there’s also the Yellow Wolf. He really likes Chinese girls.

Sometimes I worry about being classified as a Loser Laowai, But then I remember, one day, I’m going to be the president of the United States (truth) and I don’t worry about it so much. 😉

It is true that many illegals are here because their schools don’t do what they promise. I have to say it’s not much of an excuse, I have had a look at some of the ESL teaching sites and they all highlight how important it is to get the paperwork in order before you head to China…

It might be a little different in Guangzhou, Shenzhen’s where I base my experiences on – though a quick glance at Guangzhou Stuff suggests that the problem is reasonably endemic there.

Your blog makes it pretty clear that you’re commmitted to teaching (by the way folks if you haven’t read “The Wandering American” you should).

I’ll also say that if I was running away from home and living illegally in China made me happy – I wouldn’t care what anyone else (like me) though about that. In fairness to many of the LBH’s – they do seem to genuinely like being here, and that’s more than I can say most days now. (But more on that subject in another blog post – very soon).

I do like being an expat though and I have no desire to return to the UK not even if they wanted me to run the country (and thank goodness – they don’t). 🙂

Well, there are strong and weak people in every profession. It seems that you are not describing professionals and I see your distinction between those who are in China in response to the “teach English in China” links on Facebook and those who are true teachers. I wonder how long this practice will continue before parents figure it out.

I completely agree Mona, I’m a trainer (qualified and very experienced) and I wouldn’t dare to claim to be an English teacher (I wouldn’t have the first idea where to start).

I find it mind boggling that there’s not even a TESOL qualification requirement placed on most ESL jobs here. That’s a standard in almost all other countries – in Thailand they insist on CELTA qualifications.

But I have a friend here who is a good teacher (passionate, caring and self-taught) who can’t even access ESL qualifications in China – so she might have to leave for a month or two to study elsewhere…

Wow we sound like comparatively skilled ESL teachers in comparison (both having degrees and formal ESL qualifications as well as the ability to spell our names AND make a distinction between ‘you’re’ and ‘your’)…alas, a few months of teaching Korean kids who also, like Chinese kids, work stupidly long hours and resent being forced to attend “extra” classes, our souls are becoming somewhat dried up husks.

Yes, there’s nothing worse than trying to teach those who simply don’t want to learn. It’s why I liked being a trainer – in a professional situation most people want to get better at what they do. In Arabia my groups were excellent.

Sorry to hear that your Korean experience is similar to many teacher’s China experience though.

Haha its all good. While it sucks, the hours we have to work a week are fairly minimal compared to back home and for a pretty good package. Plus it allows us to explore a different part of the world 🙂 I look forward to to working with adults again though! I am much more suited to training and adult education than bratty children!

What’s criminal is that there’s no oversight or accountability in teaching here. The last school I worked at was a diploma mill so I left. I thought that by choosing to work for a California college (Coastline Community College – avoid it like the plague) I could avoid the dreck. Not so at all. Compromise after compromise. A pure bait and switch. Our director actually apologized three weeks after we began for hiring us because the conditions were so bad.

I’d suggest the government license the academies, but then there would just be pay offs and scams so that wouldn’t work for quality control, which is quite pathetic.

The children are caught in the middle, in bad programs with horrid materials and so they come away with the idea that they can’t get proficient in English. They could if they had decent teachers and schools.

The other subjects aren’t taught much better. It’s a very industrial revolution style learning. The aim seems to be to dull most minds and produce a docile workforce who work without complaint for long hours in dull jobs. Hardly, a breeding ground for the next Steven Jobs.

Korea’s not much better, actually, I’d say it’s worse because the pay is the same as the top jobs in China (those where you work for a foreign partnership) and the coast of living is higher. Korea doesn’t provide half the travel and cultural richness of China.

As someone who works in one of the better paying universities in China and used to work in an average paying one in Korea, I’d say you’re dead wrong here. In general, Korean universities have 13 month contracts (as in +1 month severance pay), sometimes a housing stipend, plus 3-4 months holiday. Per hour, no Chinese uni I know of can compete with that (even taking into account relative costs of living).

The second bit about Korea not providing half the travel and cultural richness of China is subjective in a sense; Korea is a much nicer country to travel around, with a far superior (and actually cheaper) travel infrastructure. I’ve travelled all over Korea and there’s some real gems there; China, on the other hand, has a well beaten tourist trail that always seems to be packed out with people.

Forgot to mention: in Korean universities, it’s between 12-15 hours teaching + office hours (usually 4); in China, it seems the norm is about 20 teaching hours, plus all manner of duties in addition to office hours. A normal university contract in China is 9-10 months, often excluding pay for national holidays.

My experience of Chinese universities is admittedly limited, but from what I’ve seen from a pedagogical perspective, they’re light years behind Korea.

Well, I certainly don’t mind if you pick on English teachers. We’re disparaging of ourselves, too. As long as you’re even-handed about, and you seem to be…

Based on my experience, a lot of people end up here out of simple naivete. Most of the English teachers I’ve met are well-educated (though not in teaching), adventurous, compassionate people who are here for self-serving reasons, sure, but not for bad ones. They don’t care about the money so much; they want to travel, they want to live in a foreign country, they’re eager to learn about China and Chinese culture. They don’t seek more qualifications before coming because why take the time and money if it’s not required? Most of them earnestly want to become good teachers, and they hope to do so through the “trial by fire” approach. And then they get here: they work in a school with absolutely no support system for foreign teachers, they’re given unusable, out-dated textbooks to teach from, and they have to fight against a bunch of bureaucratic nonsense to get anything done. Apart from discovering how nonexistent the infrastructure for foreign teachers is, they also discover the complete mess the Chinese education system as a whole is in.

At the university where I teach, there are 12 of us. We take our jobs with varying degrees of seriousness. We know we’re not effective teachers, and we wish the right people had reached out to us and warned us beforehand. At the same time, we compare ourselves to our Chinese counterparts whose grasp of grammar and pronunciation is poor, despite ample qualifications, and whose English classes are usually taught 95% in Chinese and heavily involve rote memorization of vocabulary. We hope, maybe maybe, we are actually helping these students by teaching differently and asking them to think critically and creatively on occasion. But then again…when are they ever going to have the opportunity to use those skills?

I’d like to see teaching English in China become a respectable pursuit, for the sake of students and teachers alike. However, considering the amount of change needed for that to happen, by the time the situation improved, English would no longer be the most desired international language. ;]

Thanks for the comprehensive comment. I agree that change will only come through active engagement from the end user system – the Chinese education system. And I don’t think that’s going to happen any time soon either.

Reblogged this on middlekingdom1of10boyz and commented:
One of the blogs that I read regularly. He makes some good points in this blog about the problems with people that are in China teaching English. Not sure I would want to teach english here, most of those I meet that teach english are not what he is seeing, but then we live in different parts of China.

The problem of needing a white face to attract parents is endemic. My daughter was the only foreign child in the local school system in a prefecture with a population of 6 million. One day after refurbishment works had been completed they asked me to go to school to play some games with my daughter’s class. A photographer was on hand, and most of the photos seemed to have me and my daughter in a prominent position. I was then wheeled around to at least one class of each year group to play games with them, and look at their work. Anyone looking at the material produced by the school would have got the impression that I was an English teacher at the school. Oh well, maybe it improved my guanxi with the education department.

The English teachers I met were a mixed bunch. There are certainly some with a strong thirst, an eye for a pretty girl, a disregard for the law, and little teaching ability. But there are many English teachers in China and I don’t think the majority are like that.

Whilst I wouldn’t want to over-generalise, the teachers I met seemed to fall into one of 3 groups:

1. the under 30s, usually well educated, who wanted to experience something very different and to learn Chinese (and maybe to find a girlfriend, or to sell their religion);

2. the over 55s who had retired (often from teaching) and wanted to try China for awhile, and possibly to show their kids they weren’t the only ones who could take a gap year (these were the teachers most respected by the students I met); and

3. those in their 30s to 50s who in their own country would be expected to be in their prime earning years and their reasons for being in China are obscure. Some of these are, no doubt, good teachers, but for some the main attraction is the fact that many Chinese believe ‘western culture’ to be so different and uninhibited and this can be used to cover for objectionable behaviour, even though in reality the behaviour is considered equally unacceptable in ‘western culture’.

I wonder whether those running away from their problems in the home country are concentrated in the big coastal cities where life is easier, particularly those with quick access to Hong Kong. Teachers in the third group were rare in the poor inland city where I lived.

There is another group of highly qualified, motivated and experienced teachers in their 30s to 50s who make good money teaching at the top universities or international schools with private lessons on the side. They are probably giving private lessons to little emperors in the evenings rather than drinking the bar dry. I suspect they will be heavily concentrated in Tier 1/2 cities where there are better opportunities to earn extra money – I certainly didn’t meet many in this group in Anhui.

I have met members of that final group that you didn’t meet in Anhui. In fact one of the math’s teachers I know falls squarely into that level of professionalism – though he likes a drink too. 🙂

Most in Shenzhen seem to fall into that third group sadly. There’s another group inside the 20-30 somethings though – those with no prospects at all back home, trying their luck in a foreign land but without the interest or commitment to really succeed. They’re pretty heavy on the ground at the moment too.

Reblogged this on Theelectriccane's Blog and commented:
I have met several weirdos who can barely speak English, let alone teach it. I know other people who think they have “arrived” because they get special treatment because they are white. Some expats won’t talk to tourists.. Thank goodness for the genuine people who I do meet every now and again.